The Tipi Raisers / Ti Ikciya Pa Slata Pi is a 501(c) 3 (non profit) organization registered in the state of South Dakota. All donations are tax deductible. The nonprofit was originally founded in 2009 as the Buffalo Boy Foundation. When it changed leadership in 2012 the Lakota elders on the board felt that the name should be given in ceremony. Ti Ikciya Pa Slata Pi was the name that came out of an ensuing Inipi Ceremony (sweat lodge) on Pine Ridge. The elders had some difficulty coming up with a translation for what they heard that night but ultimately agreed The Tipi Raisers would be a loose translation. The elders shared that the concept of "Ti Ikciya Pa Slata Pi", represents this idea of everyone coming together in a reciprocal exchange of community building.
The nonprofit has its origins and is deeply engaged with the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation but our outreach also includes the local Colorado Native community and the Cheyenne River, Hopi, Navajo and Ute Nations. The public is invited to join Service Tripson various reservations throughout the year.
The Tipi Raiser's horse herd and administrative hub is located in Lafayette, Colorado where we host a variety of cultural events, rides and gatherings. These offer local volunteers an opportunity to engage with our friends from the various reservations as well as help with caring for the Tipi Raiser's herd and gathering needed donations for the reservations.
In 2018, we created the Gen7 Youth program to ensure the youth voice is present in all Tipi Raiser's activities. Gen7 provides opportunities for young people from across Colorado and the various reservations we serve to engage in meaningful cross-cultural and intergenerational experiences as well as to explore the unique gifts they can bring to the issues in their communities that effect them most.
What Makes the Tipi Raisers Unique?
Whether we are providing employment, service projects or humanitarian aid – we execute our work in partnership with the communities we operate in while honoring and amplifying the sacred Indigenous Wisdom inherent in each culture.
On service trips, volunteers work alongside our Native friends and partners to ease conditions of poverty, engage in reconciliation dialogue and learn about one another's cultures. Friends and partners from a variety of Indigenous communities travel to Colorado – and nationally – with the Tipi Raisers to share their culture, history and traditions with schools communities and organizations. Our Gen7 Youth program provides social/emotional support, builds cultural bridges among the younger generations and empowers and activates the youth around the social change they wish to see in their communities.
